One mistake can stall a woman’s career, while men’s flaws or bad ideas are minimized

Many women in management still struggle to move ahead. But a key reason for this widely discussed problem rarely gets discussed: Women’s workplace weaknesses are overplayed or punished excessively, while men’s shortcomings often are ignored, according to executive coaches, management consultants and academic researchers.

“If women make one mistake, their career growth gets stalled,” says Joelle Emerson, chief executive of Paradigm, a diversity and inclusion-strategy consultancy that has advised hundreds of U.S. companies....